Chaosbound: Elarith Chronicles

Valtherus, weakened and battered by Aurel's Chaos Domain, felt a strange awe. What a powerful domain, he thought, his mind racing. Perhaps this is the one who can truly defeat Lumiel... The thought solidified into a desperate hope.

"Thyranthe, no... Aurel," Valtherus rasped, his voice barely a whisper. "If you can actually defeat Lumiel, I have a favor to ask. Not for myself, but for the people of this continent."

Aurel raised an eyebrow, a flicker of disgust on his face. He had just fought this man, who now spoke of saving people as if he hadn't been an instrument of their suffering.

"Save Luci," Valtherus continued, his voice finding strength. "Once you defeat Lumiel, our ties to him will sever, and we will die along with our master. But Luci... let her continue the legacy of the Athenari. Someone has to rule and unite humanity."

"Didn't you already try that?" Aurel's voice was sharp, a cynical edge to his words. "And look what it's gotten you."

"No, Luci is different," Valtherus insisted, a desperate plea in his eyes. "Unlike us, we were created by Lumiel. We could never defy him. But Luci... she is unique."

Luci looked at Valtherus, her expression a mix of worry and unspoken pleading. Her gaze shifted to Aurel, silently begging him not to kill the man she called father.

"Just like you, the only chaos divinant, Luci is the only one who carries the pure essence of the God of Light," Valtherus explained. "She is already under your command, and she won't defy you. Lumiel... he doesn't care about the people. He plans to ascend to godhood using fate and chaos. Once he becomes a God, I don't know what will become of humanity. He is mad. I know I'm not in a position to ask this of you, but please... end him."

Aurel turned away, muttering to himself, his voice too low for the others to hear. This Lumiel, it doesn't sound right. He wants to be a God... well, that's none of my business. But this guy said he'll kill the humans? No, he didn't say that...

He fell into his own thoughts. Why would anyone think a god would be dangerous? It's not a bad thing, is it? There are no more gods in this world; maybe having one is a good thing.

Valtherus and Luci watched him, wondering what he was doing. Luci shrugged her shoulders at Valtherus, a silent message passing between them. Don't look at me. I don't know what he's doing either, talking to himself.

Aurel continued to mumble. Maybe I should just befriend Lumiel so I can live a peaceful life with the people in my territory. But Luci is one of my people now... Should I kill Valtherus and offer his head to Lumiel as a peace offering? No, Luci will be mad. I can't let her be mad at me. I've already broken her heart by refusing her love...

He stole a glance at Luci. She noticed him and quickly composed herself, her posture once again a silent plea for Valtherus's life. Aurel's mind wandered. Well, she is a beauty indeed. Hmm, those teary eyes... her body... He slapped himself on the face. Stop it. This isn't right.

Aurel turned back to them, his expression hardening. "I told you your life is already forfeited." He slowly walked toward Valtherus and created a barrier of chaos energy, trapping Luci inside.

Luci screamed, pounding on the barrier. "Please, Master Aurel, please don't! Don't kill him, I beg you!"

Aurel's eyes met hers. Her gaze, filled with tears and desperation, pierced through his resolve. It was this look that made his next words a command, not a threat. "Close your eyes," Aurel said, his voice flat.

Valtherus obeyed.

Aurel's domain of chaos expanded, enclosing the three of them, a protective bubble meant to prevent any interruption or sneak attack. He remembered his last battle with the Sword King.

"Might as well try this on him," Aurel said to himself. "This guy is like a Menis, a creation of Lumiel. Maybe he's like Rindel and Eryn, my Animas, who are linked to me. I have to temporarily sever his connection to Lumiel. If this fails, he'll die, and Luci will be mad. If it succeeds... oh, I hope it will. Yeah, it will."

He created a field of pure chaos energy that surrounded Valtherus, slowly enveloping his entire body. The energy thinned into fine threads that penetrated his skin, his muscles, his bones, and slowly covered his internal organs: his brain, his lungs, his heart.

"Yeah, I better make sure all parts are covered," Aurel said, concentrating hard. "I don't know where his core is, unlike Eryn. I don't think I have the ability to find it in him, so this will have to do. I hope this works."

**A moment of gut-wrenching pain made Valtherus gasp, his body feeling like it was being squeezed from every direction. Then came the complete and utter silence. In his mind, in his heart, he was in a dark place, walking in his inner world. The profound emptiness was disorienting, yet strangely peaceful. I've never felt this before. What is this? So silent. Is this my soul leaving my body? It's peaceful. I've finally found peace.

He thought of the people who died because of his actions, and felt a pang of regret. He hadn't felt guilt, but instead a feeling that he could have done better as an Athenari. He didn't deserve this kind of peace.

He opened his eyes. He saw Aurel, who was touching his chin, inspecting him.

"Well, how do you feel?" Aurel asked. "Do tell."

"I'm alive?" Valtherus asked, disoriented. "What did you do to me?"

"I sort of cut your link to him and shielded you from any external power," Aurel explained. "You're covered by my chaos energy like some kind of wrapping. You won't be able to use any of your light divinity for now. I'm not sure how long it'll last."

Aurel released Luci from the barrier, and she ran to Valtherus, wrapping her arms around him. "Father, Father! You're safe!"

Valtherus stumbled as he tried to stand, a foreign weakness coursing through him. He instinctively reached for his power, but found only a hollow space where his divine light had once resided. He could no longer feel any connection to Lumiel. He didn't know how to feel—was he happy? Shocked? Thankful? The feeling was foreign to him, and the proud Athenari he once was felt small and insignificant in front of Aurel.

"I still haven't forgiven you, Athenari," Aurel said, his voice softer. "But maybe you can live a new life and atone for your sins. There is still a battle ahead."

"Right," Valtherus said. "Aurel... hear me out. Lumiel is no fool; he's definitely coming for you. You are his—"

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Aurel cut him off. "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure he's coming for me. When he does, I'll just tell him this was all the Abyssals' doing. I didn't do anything. I'm sure he'll understand."

Valtherus stared, confused. What is he talking about?

Aurel flew off so fast toward Erynos that he was just a blur of chaotic energy.

Erynos, who was still blasting chaos energy everywhere, a mad gleam in his eyes, noticed his master approaching. He stopped his frenzy and bowed. "Hello, Master. Are you done with that Athenari?"

"Nah, I couldn't kill him in front of Luci," Aurel replied. "But I did something to him. Not sure if it worked."

"I think that's for the best," Erynos said. He thought to himself, Hmm, Master's behavior seems to be getting weirder and weirder every day. The chaos in him seems to be representing how he thinks... chaotic. Oh well, I guess that's just how he's always been.

"So what now, Master?" Erynos asked.

"Don't stop," Aurel said. "We're still harvesting. We're targeting Menis and other corrupted beings."

"What about the Arkhanis?" Erynos asked. "Aren't we going to help them?"

"No, we are not taking part in that," Aurel said. "Continue what you're doing. I'll start converting the corrupted chaos energy around us. Cover me."

And so, Aurel and Erynos continued their usual chaos harvest.

Meanwhile, in his pool of flowing energy—a mixture of fate and chaos—Lumiel felt it. His connection with Valtherus had disappeared.

A sharp, electric shock ran through Lumiel, as if a vital thread had been cleanly snipped. It was not the feeling of death, but of an absolute severance. A piece of his power, a fragment of his authority, had been stolen from him. Did Valtherus die? No. This felt different. He had been cut off. The implications sent a cold shiver through him.

Back at the war room, Vyran watched his screens, a mosaic of icons representing the battle unfolding across the continent of Elarith. The map showed sectors of Luminary Church territory, marked by a sea of green where his forces had seized control, and pockets of red where they had faltered. Reports flashed across his view, his eyes glowing with focused intensity as he issued commands.

Then, one message cut through the chaos: "Valtherus has Fallen. Thyranthe succeeded."

A smile bloomed on Vyran's face, a wave of relief washing over him. He took a deep, shuddering breath he hadn't realized he was holding. This message was proof. The enigmatic Chaos Divinant had delivered. His gamble had paid off, and his master's faith was rewarded.

He turned to Nephra. "Brother, we lost half of our ground units, but we've dealt enough damage to the Luminaries. I think now is the time. Initiate Phase 2."

Nephra nodded, a grim determination in his eyes. "I'll leave this base to you. I have my part to play now."

"It's going to happen, isn't it?" Vyran asked, a flicker of worry in his gaze. "What will happen to Aurel?"

"Everything will be alright," Nephra said, his voice calm and certain. "Everything is happening according to the Chaos God's will. Everyone has their role to fill."

The wheel of fate is finally starting to turn, Nephra thought to himself. It's finally my turn.

Meanwhile, in the skies above, the Athenari Karthas led his holy armada and a legion of Angels against the forces of chaos and the mecha units unleashed from the Arkhanis floating fortresses. As the aerial battle raged, he noticed the largest of the five fortresses begin to shift its form, slowly transforming into a perfect sphere.

What's going on? A pit of dread formed in his stomach. He looked down at the Sanctum below and fear flashed in his eyes. Oh no, is it going to crash there?

"Fire everything! Now!" Karthas screamed, his hands trembling as he gave the command. The order was too late. The other four fortresses split apart, their sections reconfiguring to create a formidable shield around the transforming Arkhanis. Panic swelled in Karthas. He broke away from his command and charged toward the spherical fortress himself, determined to stop it, but he was a moment too late.

From his command center, Vyran pressed a button on his console with a chilling conviction. He whispered, "Eat this, Lumiel."

As if on cue, all of Vyran's remaining units began a rapid retreat. The mecha units stayed behind, a suicidal rearguard whose sole purpose was to ensure the fortress fulfilled its mission. The spherical Arkhanis began to glow, then hurtled toward the Sanctum like a falling star. The fragments of the other fortresses cleared its path, blasting away any resistance.

Inside the Sanctum, Dainoric saw the approaching projectile and aimed every weapon at his disposal. "This isn't good," he muttered, rallying his defenses. They had to defend the Sanctum at all costs. He transformed into his true, golden form, a divine beam of light erupting from his core and lancing toward the fortress. But all of his attacks were preempted, the other fortresses sacrificing themselves to ensure the sphere reached its target.

An eerie, unnatural silence fell over the battlefield, a beat of profound nothingness before the sound arrived. With an earth-shattering roar, the fortress impacted the Sanctum. The explosion was not a simple burst of fire; it was a cataclysmic eruption of energy. The air became a wave of incandescent heat, incinerating everything in its path. The ground was turned to glass, and the structures were vaporized into motes of dust. The lingering scent of ozone and burning flesh choked the air. Dainoric, shielded by a divine barrier he summoned at the last second, watched in silent horror as his comrades simply ceased to exist, their forms atomized into nonexistence.

Lumiel himself was not spared from the blast's initial force. He emerged from the dissipating energy, his form unharmed but his face contorted with a mixture of rage and madness. "Damn Abyssals! You will pay for this!" he screamed, his voice a bellow that echoed across the continent.

"Rakan!" he bellowed. "Do it!"

Somewhere far away, a figure known as Rakan, the very being who had torn the Sword King's heart from his chest, began a ritual. The stolen heart, an ancient artifact, glowed with dark energy. It was the key to activating the Malice Bloom.

Without warning, the sky didn't just darken; it bled to black, and the air itself seemed to scream as the chaos heralds sang their song of death. The ground began to writhe as hordes of monstrous creatures, the Malice Blooms, crawled from the earth. The sky split with chaotic lightning.

People everywhere looked up in shock. One man, his face pale, simply froze, his eyes wide in terror. He couldn't scream. "What's happening?" someone shouted. "The Malice Bloom! It's the Malice Bloom!" they screamed as they saw the giant, ethereal forms of chaos heralds rise in the sky, surveying the land and commanding their forces to spread death and chaos.

"This can't be," a man whispered, his voice trembling. "Why now? Isn't it too early? We just survived the last one... this is not right!" Fear, cold and absolute, gripped the masses as the carnage began, a plague of death enveloping the entire continent.

Back at the Sanctum, Lumiel threw his head back and laughed, a hollow sound that carried across the ravaged landscape. "Hahahaha! This is what you get for defying me!"

Meanwhile, in the War God's domain, the steward, Azaniel, was alerted by the sudden activation of the Malice Bloom. "Lumiel!" he roared. "I will end you this time for good! You have broken our pact!" He moved with the speed of a comet, a bolt of divine light streaking across the sky toward Lumiel's location.

But halfway there, Nephra appeared directly in his path, a storm of chaos energy swirling around him.

"Greetings, Azaniel," Nephra said, his voice calm. "Please stop."

"Nephra, you!" Azaniel's rage was palpable. "Are you colluding with Lumiel?"

"No, certainly not," Nephra replied, the chaos around him growing more intense. "But..."

The scene cut away, leaving the two stewards suspended in a moment of brewing conflict, their intentions veiled in mystery. The fate of their confrontation was left to be discovered later, a tantalizing secret for another chapter.

Elsewhere, the Shadowblades, led by their leader Phantomblade, formed a defensive line. "Alright, boys, and Aqua," Phantomblade announced, striking a dramatic pose. "The gloom now nears, so quell your fears! With darkness falls the endless night, a spooky foe, what a fright! We stand our ground to make it right!"

Ripclaw muttered a side comment. "Boss, I thought you'd gotten better with your poetry, but it seems you've gotten worse."

Darktide snapped back, "Focus, Ripclaw! They're coming!"

Hordes of chaos creatures surged toward them. The Shadowblades stood firm, supported by the Malus and the other members of the Umbrafang.

Aqua groaned. "Boss, am I really going with them?"

Arkan chuckled, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, Aqua, you worry too much. You know we all have our role to play, and besides I'm coming along with you."

Behind the defensive line, Lord Aric led the rest of their group. Beside him, a hulking figure, Kirin, stretched his muscles. "Ah, second master," he said to Lord Aric, his eyes gleaming. "I can't wait to show you how strong my divine fist has become."

Lord Aric cast a glance across the faces of the impromptu mission squad. This is going to be a hell of a mission, he thought. Then Lord Aric declared, "Everyone, Operation HeartSeeker has begun."